What Others Say: Fear of books

We’re not sure which scenario at Pensacola’s Washington High School is worse: that a controversial book was removed from the school’s summer reading list for ninth- and 10th-graders or that Principal Michael Roberts took it upon himself to remove “Little Brother.”

Either way reveals the danger when one authority figure gets to decide a book’s value. That’s just what Mr. Roberts did in the waning days of the school year. Without following Escambia County’s policy, he decided that “Little Brother,” a young-adult novel by Cory Doctorow, should be pulled from the reading list.

That decision rightly landed him in hot water. A complaint has been filed with the National Coalition Against Censorship. The chairwoman of the school’s English department, Mary Kate Griffith, told reporter Jamie Secola she filed the complaint. This goes to the heart of education: exposing young people to new ideas and letting them develop an understanding, an appreciation or a dislike.

“The whole idea that one person is going to say no, whether it was another administrator or teacher or parent, isn’t right,” Ms. Griffith said in a news story published Tuesday.

Griffith is right. The policy in place protects freedom of thought, not the whims of one person, especially the principal, who represents the government.

Principals should have discretion on meting out discipline, on deciding what’s best for the campus or on dozens of other school-related issues. But for books, there is a procedure in place, and Mr. Roberts either ignored it or hoped no one was watching. That’s not a lesson for students to be taught.

In emails, Mr. Roberts wrote that the book “is about questioning authority” and shows questioning authority “as a positive thing.” It is a positive thing when done appropriately. Questioning authority ended segregation, got women the right to vote and earned our freedom from British tyranny.

Books that provoke or inspire teens to challenge authority are as important as those that don’t. The goal of education is not simply to make good students. The greater goal is to produce good citizens.

We ask parents and school officials to heed Ms. Griffith’s advice: “We can’t be afraid to teach something because one or two people might complain.”